Posted on November 07, 2014 by Kate Halsall
Do you get your five a day? Is five a day enough? Do we need more? Here is a blog looking at whether five a day really is enough?
Here are some scary facts from the World Health Organisation:
1. Approximately 1.7 million (2.8%) of deaths worldwide are attributable to low fruit and vegetable consumption.
2. Low fruit and vegetable intake is among the top 10 selected risk factors for global mortality.
3. Worldwide, insufficient intake of fruit and vegetables is estimated to cause around 14% of gastrointestinal cancer deaths, about 11% of ischaemic heart disease deaths and about 9% of stroke deaths.
Pass me the fruit basket quick! It’s clear to say that essentially we need to be eating fruit and vegetables in some quantity! But is five a day enough?
Did you know that the guidelines we use for our recommended “five a day” are based on documents and research which are over 10 years old? 10+ years! I was honestly surprised by this as there is constantly new research into nutrition and what we should and shouldn’t eat; how has this remained the same for such a long time? Also, there are a number of articles out there which support the move to 7 a day, so why isn’t the government starting to push for this?
It’s not surprising that different countries have different guidelines. The 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans for example, say you should consume between five and 13 servings of fruits and vegetables each day. The CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention) based in Atlanta, even has a website which works out your portions for you – try it and see what it says:
http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/fruitsvegetables/howmany.html
Denmark recommends 6 portions of fruit and veg. France & Canada recommend 10 portions of fruit and vegetables a day. The Japanese government, recommends up to 13 portions of vegetables plus four of fruit daily! In Australia, they say the emphasis should be on eating more vegetables than fruit and recommend five portions of vegetables and two of fruit per day.
Take Action
Now this may shock you – but we’re not all created equal! Your fruit and veg portion recommendations vary on whether you’re a child or adult, male or female, old or young, sedentary or active. The message has to be however, that you need to be eating “at least” five a day. Based on this five a day, an adult should consume a minimum of 400g of fruit and veg every day, or 5 portions of 80g. If it fits with your lifestyle and fitness/dietary goals, then by all means feel free to eat more!
As a personal training team we recommend you to only have 1-2 portions of fruit per day if you looking to drop weight and body fat and get the rest of your servings from veg.
Further Reading
http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/fruit/en/
http://www.eufic.org/page/en/page/FAQ/faqid/recommended-intake-fuits-vegetables-europe/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-26818386
http://www.nhs.uk/livewell/5aday/pages/5adayhome.aspx
http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/many-fruits-veggies-should-eat-day-3324.html